Chinese overseas direct investment into Australia hit A$15.4bn ($11.5bn) in 2016, up 12 per cent on the previous year with a record number of deals and despite growing wariness over foreign buyers snapping up infrastructure, according to a new report.

The record 103 deals made during the year included A$7.6bn of investments made by private Chinese companies from a record 78 deals, according to the report by KPMG and the University of Sydney.

Commercial real estate saw the largest investment, attracting A$5.6bn, or 36 per cent of the total – down marginally from 2015. This was followed by A$4.3bn of investment into infrastructure, which at 28 per cent of the total marked a record year for the sector. Healthcare investments put that sector in third place with 9 per cent of total investments, or A$1.4bn.